Santa Clara County, California

Santa Clara County, home of California’s Silicon Valley, relies on a combination of local groundwater and snowmelt conveyed from the Sierra Nevada Mountains hundreds of miles away for its drinking water.  Unfortunately, these sources will be put at risk by climate change, particularly rising sea levels potentially impacting aquifers and increased temperatures resulting in a significant loss of Sierra snowpack and earlier spring runoff that the state’s major water projects may not be able to capture.

The Santa Clara Valley Water District, the county’s independent comprehensive water management agency, has responded to the threat of global climate change by undertaking a number of initiatives to help its customers conserve water – ranging from rebates on the purchase of a high-efficiency toilets and washers to a program that helps residential and commercial customers implement less water-intensive landscaping.

These conservation programs are producing results. Indeed, in 2006, the District’s 20+ conservation programs and recycling efforts helped the community reduce water demand by 55,000 acre-feet (12% of demand), resulting in recognition by the EPA as the national 2007 Water Efficiency Leader for the government sector.

Moreover, a District study found that between 1993 and 2006 its water efficiency and recycling programs saved a total of 370,000 acre-feet of water.  These water savings directly led to the conservation of 1.42 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, enough to power 207,000 households for one year.  These energy savings, in turn, prevented the release of 335 million kg of carbon dioxide, which equals the annual emissions of 72,000 passenger cars.  These emissions savings demonstrate how strong water conservation programs can be utilized to respond to climate change.